Prevalence and Characteristic Features of Metabolic Syndrome

Metabolic syndrome(MS)is a cluster of diseases each of which carries grave risk for severe vascular events. There is paucity of report on the presence and features of MS among Nigerians and Africans with type 2 diabetes mellitus(DM). The study determined the prevalence of MS among Nigerians with type 2 diabetes mellitus, the clinical and biochemical features of MS among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The relationship between MS and the control of diabetes mellitus and blood pressure was also evaluated. Four hundred and eight patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus attending the medical outpatient department of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Lagos were screened for the prevalence of MS. Out of 408 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus screened for MS, 210 (51.5%)had MS.Patients with MS were older than those without MS. The prevalence of MS among Nigerians with type 2 DM is high, and the family history of triad of obesity, hypertension and most frequent component of MS is truncal obesity. Control of hypertension was poor among patient with MS.